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2017-12-05 - Mission to Latveria
Deep undergound below Avenger's mansion, Tony is standing in the doorway of the Quinjet that he's loaning to this group for their mission. The runway is well lit and the hangar doors are open. "Okay, Grim. If anything happens to this jet, I'm holding you responsible, since you're the ranking Avenger here." He smiles. "Serqet, I want to thank you again for coming. This group will need all the help they can get. Now, remember you're there to ask for Victor's help. Do not start an incident if you can help it. Any final questions before you leave?" Carrie Kelley stands with her arms crossed casually over her chest as she examines the Quinjet. It was really her first time seeing one. Her eyes roam over it's lines, it's shape, taking in the propulsion area as well as the mass. Trying to figure it out. How quick? How agile? "What's the programing language used for it?" Maybe she didn't mean to ask that out loud... Maybe. Turning her attention back to their current benefactor she flashes a faint smile. "Figure it might help to know in case we're in a pinch." Never could tell what would be needed if damages were incurred. Angelica Jones has so many questions. She is, however, belting in and making sure that she's got her seat back and tray table in their proper upright position. She also has a small tablet that she's using to skim necessary trip details. And mostly trying to not be too noticed, in her yellow skintight jumpsuit. She has her orange mask in her lap, not on her face, and looks like she's in over her head. No questions from her. The tail of Adelah's suit flicked as if irritated at something. "Your thanks was overshadowed by your need to imply I'd 'start an incident'. You asked me to do my job and that's exactly what I'm doing. If you'd like me to start an incident before we leave, just say the word." Not that he really needed to, they'd already technically been spoken. "My final question is what do you expect of this visit?" She left it fairly generalized to see what answer would come about. Placing her hands together, she spread them apart and revealed a screen that she proceeded to look up information on. "You team me up with these options and you ask that? Is this one of the hazing rituals? Tony? Tony?" the last part is trailing off as he looks between those gathered. "The purpose is dual purpose, fact finding and if possible peace of mind or assurance." He was holding up a stiff posture but inside he was too step from running out of the door. "Equipment Checked? Everyone used the bathroom? Inflight snacks prepared?" he is asking them as well as tony. Tony looks at Carrie when she asks what the programming language is. He starts laughing. At first it's a chuckle, then a full on belly laugh. He pats her on the shoulder. "Wow..that's..that's a good one. Like I would program in a language that other people knew." She'd just better hope that nothing happened to the onboard A.I. He flashes a smile at Angelica next, he could see how nervous she is. He shoots her a finger-gin and clucks his tonge. "You'll be fine, Red. Remember to be confident." Tony blinks at Serqet. "I never said that. Wait..no I wasn't just talking to you specifically. I meant the whole team. The objective here is to convince Victor von Doom..yeah, what Grim said." He casually leans in the doorway of the jet. "Once Freya and Zatanna get here, you've got the green light to lift off, Red Robin." Birds fly around all the time. Ravens fly around all the time. Ravens do -not- turn into statuesque warrior woemn every day though. One raven flies down and alights upon Angelica's shoulder. Wings flap a bit, the beak yawns.. and then the raven launches again before transforming into Freya. "Forgive me for being late." she states. Zatanna is arriving fashionably - not fashionably late as she drops out of nothingness, having taken the League teleporter over. "This is going to be fun.." She murmurs as she arrives, giving a nod to the others. Managing a thumbs-up, the quiet redhead notices her five point crash harness is tangled and goes about the process of untieing herself. Angelica is still not cleared to ride one of these things, so the fact that she's along needs she needs to read the instructions as she goes. Angelica Jones looks at the raven. Blinks. Then grins, as she sees a friend. "Oh hey. you made it." It sounds like thanks, not just a welcome. Red Robin endures the laughter with the corners of her mouth twitching in quiet amusement of her own. Not quiet the reaction she expected but it did answer her question. "Worth a shot. Of course," she adds as she turns to stride toward the pilot seat, "That just sounds like a challenge to me." One she'd consider later, after this particular venture. Slipping into the seat she reaches up to strap herself in if there any belts to begin with while keping an ear open for the arrival of the last few. "Right. If you don't mind, Stark, could you please provide any data you have on Latveria? Customs, yadda yadda. If we're going to be asking a favor we should at least know how not to make asses of ourselves in his home. I'll read it on the way." While piloting. She's fully capable of multitasking. "Everyone ready?" "Don't worry. We'll get through this," Adelah spoke while closing up her screen and staring directly at Grim. He seemed a bit off, but that's him almost all the time. "This vehicle doesn't have bathrooms or available snacks?" She asked in a deadpan manner. "That aside, I understand the objective. I don't know what the prospects of this are, but hopefully, we'll err on the side of positive." Her attention is momentarily drawn to the Crow and Zatanna in particular as they arrive. A nod of recognition is given to both. Grim pauses listening in case anyone had complaints or comments, ranking member of his ... "Well Met, freya. You are not especially late. We were waiting on you as well as the rep from the League" he says before going into the jet. "Angelica, you ok?" he asks as he passes her as she is fumbling with her harness. He reaches down grabbing the harness "It goes like this, this goes there and you adjust that like this.. Got It?" he asks as he instructs her on the use of her harness. Before giving her a thumbs up and moving to one of the control seats at the front. "Red Bird, you have flight experience right? I will unlock the controls for you. I will provide co-pilot and navigational information please do not deviate." then he looks over his shoulder "Did we get permission to land in Latvaria or are we landing outside the border?" he asks. Zatanna takes a seat in the Quinjet and nods to Red Robin, "So have we told them we're coming or not? Or are they not going to be particularly happy to see us?" She quickly goes over her mental checklist. "And who's going to be on point for negotiations and who should we expect to be on perimeter duty in case we have to fight our way out? And what's the tactical plan if things go south?" Stark actually steps over and embraces Freya briefly. Apparently he meant it when he said that he wanted to start over with her. "Good luck and be careful." He nods to Zatanna. "That goes for all of you." He steps away and begins walking out. "Ask Grim. He's from that region, that's why I assigned him to this mission. You are expected by Victor." He says to Grim. "I programmed his com channel into the computer. Use that once you get in Latverian air space. I'm sure they will instruct you from there." He waves and then disappears into a door. Red Robin clips the last buckle of her own harness into place. Somehow she manages to do this all while wearing that cape of hers which was tucked neatly out of the way by being folded behind her. It didn't obstruct her movement this way. "Flew first when I was thirteen. I got this," she assures Grim. A glance is cast back over her shoulder watching Stark leave with a somber expression. Tilting her head to Zatanna she replies, "He knows. It's still a touchy situation from the impression I've gotten. As for plans, I suggest we use the time in travel to figure that out. I'm used to planning things out and I have experience, but I also know I'm the least known among you. If any of you would like to be 'in charge'..." The offer is there. She knew she could be bossy sometimes--She was trained to be. That didn't mean she expected others to accept it. The chair is swiveled back around to the controls with a nod. "If you could unlock them, please. After that, Grim, I think it's time that you explain why you are so very NOT eager to be going to Latveria." The tension he'd had was obvious even if he were trying to hide it now. "Is there a reason we should be concerned for having you with us?" With her harness in proper place, Angelica gives Grim a smile of thanks. The fact that she can fly is irrelevant; she needs to get this stuff done right. "I'm ready," she says once she's been checked by a friend and is actually ready. She doesn't complain, though she's a little bit cold and confused. she's surrounded by friends, who'll help if she needs it. So she's safe. Adelah was just ready to get the mission started. She wasn't exactly in a sociable mood, but she could stand to make an attempt every so often. "I believe we can discuss the details ofthe mission once we're along the way. For now, everyone should be ready and secured. We don't have much time to waste. If we are expected to arrive, I believe that leaves us at the mercy of our host, however, depending on our ability to negotiate, we may not have to worry about fighting our way out. Additionally, Latveria is very strong technologically. I do not have the best projections for fighting our way out of an issue. As was warned earlier, we should not attempt to start incidents if we can avoid it." Zatanna takes a breath, "Lovely. I've read the files the League has on Doom that the Avengers provided. real piece of work. I think he's probably more dangerous than Luthor." She taps her chin. "So this is going to be interesting. I'll be backup if you need it, just tell me what to do." Pulling the fancy avengers card out and waving it by the console and the system warms up "AI: Welcome Grimoire, Logging In.. System will be online shortly" he looks up for a moment, "Please unlock the secondary station for use by its occupant. Limit access to flight systems only, guest priviledges. Also Load up the flight plan for Latveria, send the proper plans. Prepare the Cloak for use to avoid terrestial radar and satelite survieilance until we reach the border. Auto-Deactive in Latvarian Air Space with confirmation. Being warmup sequence" he has practiced those words all morning in front of a mirror and a very disturbed Jarvis. "As we are from many groups and our skillsets may not be known. Leadership roles in areas will need to be mapped out. Waffle Iron, The Stark has asked that you lead diplomatic relations with Zatanna" he looks to the others "The rest we will need to decide" he says with his chair spun around so he can see into the back of the jet. Angelica Jones blinks. Then, slowly, she puts up a hand to ask a question. "Excuse me, did you just say waffle iron?" Some things get a response, even for Grim. And she leans over near Zatanna, whispering, "Good to have you along, you can fly right? I mean, if you have to." Red Robin watches the process that Grimoire unlocks the controls with keen interest, and a tilt of her head. The voice would be the issue if... ah, but those were thoughts for another time. Her eyes skim over the controls waiting, watching, and listening for the moment when the engines would be prepped and they could be in the air already. Whatever her thoughts were are scattered when... "Waffle Iron?" A glance is cast over her shoulder with an arch of an eyebrow. Which one was he referring to? Adelah gains a nod of agreement. "We're not there to start a war. Hopefully we're there to gain allies, even if it's only a temporary truce. Still, I'd prefer we not go in showing all our cards so to speak." While she considers the options there quietly the engines finally come up, and she gets them on their way. "Zatanna, Grimoire, you are our magic types. Is there any way you could make it seem like we're all one step to the side from where we actually are, or something similar? It might give us a bit of time to react in case things go South." Quieter she adds, "Still need to know that, Grim. We can keep it quiet if you need." Zatanna nods to Angelica, "I can handle it if I have to. I'm not as adept as the rest of you but I can keep up so long as we're not going to get into a fight while doing it." She offers and gives another nod to Adelah. "We can hope, but I'm doubtful we're going to get that lucky. But I hope it ends well." She takes a breath, "For all our sakes." Her tone is a bit less grim, but she relaxes some. She nods to Adelah. "And I'll help however I can. I'm not as familiar with him as you are so you can take point and just tell me what I can do." If Adelah had a coffee cup, it'd be crushed at this moment. "...We do not have a Waffle Iron in this group," she spoke calmly. Although, a certain darkness loomed over her. "Are you certain your blood sugar is not calling for any particular foods? You appear to be in need. Did you prepare /your/ in flight snack, perhaps?" She reopened her screen and began to take notes on the current situation to log and keep ready to read off within her helmet. When she was certain she had enough to work with, she cast it off to the side instead of closing it, just in case she needed to add more. "Temporary truces are what diplomacy tends to be made of. True peace is not a realistic nor achievable goal. Unfortunately, it is more like a business than anything else," she piggybacked off Red Robin's words. "Let us not place our focus on being hopeful, only reasonable. Doubts have no place here. They're plentiful in abundance already. We don't need luck, just facts perhaps a little pursuasion," she replied to Zatanna. "We will need to turn the odds to our favor somehow." Zatanna taps her chin, "Well, from what I've read of him from his files, he tends to view things for his own interest. So we have to present them in such a way that whatever deal advantages him or that in turn lets him deal with something else." "Did I just say.. Waffle iron.. I missed breakfast. I meant the Wakandan would lead the diplomatic attache, with The Leagues Zatanna as her second. This will ensure the interests of both groups are present in the discussion." Grim turns around pressing several buttons on the console, only a few of them cause like error sounds or dialogs. "You may lift off at your convenience red bird." then he grumbles to himself his head turning to carrie as she was persistent, he had to respect that even if he hated her topic. "It would be unwise to initate any pre-emptive moves defensive or otherwise. Victor is beyond a doubt, well prepared and in entire of every aspect of this meeting. The location is of his choosing, in a land under his control, we will be watched, scanned, probed, and analyzed more times than you can imagine" he looks at carrie "No matter how active an imagination you may have." "We must not appear hostile or dishonest in our efforts. Now that doesn't mean that we should not have contingency plans" this grim was a very different animal from his usual self, poised, cold and regimented. "I said I missed breakfast. Serqet" in her molten salt cannon launched at him before explaining her reasoning. The trip to Latveria itself is uneventful. It gives the group a chance to talk, maybe learn a little more about each other, and most importantly, come up with a game plan on how to deal with Doom. As instructed the cloak on the Quinjet drops once they enter Latverian airspace. There seem to be aerial platforms with large guns that train on the jet as it flies past. On the ground below, there are legions and legions of Doombots. Some of them are patrolling in the air, but most of them are on the ground, patrolling the boarder. The radio inside chimes before a female voice comes over it. "Unidentified plane. You have entered Latverian air space. Please identify yourselves immediately or you will be shot down." Red Robin merely grins, "Contingency plans are my thing. That's why I'm already brainstorming some," she explains. A silent nod of thanks is given when the controls are fully turned over to her. There's a little lurch as the QuinJet starts off until she gets the hang of how sensitive the controls were. Really, she's a quick study and she soon focuses on the flight, plotting, and getting there in one peice. When they arrive and the cloak drops, Red Robin is already waiting for a call over the comms. This guy really didn't ease up on the guards it seemed. "We're the envoy from the Avengers, Justice League, and JSA. We're expected. Tell us where you want us." Angelica whispers to herself something about 'well, that answers that question' as the group is referred to as unidentified. She keeps her hands in her lap, uncertain as to how you talk your way into a militarized state, but glad she's not the one who has to do it. So far on the trip she's shown herself to be exactly what she appears: a rookie who really wants to be helpful. So likely the one who's most likely to get someone hurt. The fact that she seems to know that is hopeful, though. She's intent on not touching anything unless ordered to do so. Adelah looked out through a window and at the guns trained on the jet. "Unidentified. That does no correlate with the information we had earlier. We were told we were expected. How does the system not recognize us?" She questioned. she follows the situation, monitoring Red Robin closely along with the rest of the group onboard. Zatanna goes to glance over at Adelah, and she goes to hold he rhands up, "I can try and do something wtih my magic, but that might get him annoyed if he sees us trying to scan. But we could be going into a trap." You paged Freya with 'So far, we've arrived and Grim called the plane a waffle iron (not kidding) and everyone was confused, and Doom's land to air defenses are asking us who we are (unidentified craft, please identify yourselves) and Carrie said we were expected, and there are doombots in the air all around us.' "Latvaria Control: This is Diplomatic Quinjet, we are expected. Code: Alpha-Zero-Whiskey-Nine-... yeah what she said." as his copilot takes control of the situation. He turns around "So serqet and zatanna represent the diplomatic. Red Bird and Freya as our response team, your job is to handle if it goes south. Doom prefers to use robots and cybernetics so do not hesitate if it comes to collateral. Surviving is more important than being reprimanded for being creative." he looks at himself "My job is to shoulder the responsibilities, and if it comes down to it. Leave me behind I will provide a distraction as I can teleport through his electromagnetic interference. The quintjet has been programmed to return to safe space and full counter measures have been programmed." he says to them all. Silent and stoic were the names of the games for Freya. Everi since she greeted Angelica, said hello to Grim and Tony... and well everyone, she sat down and waited patiently and quietly. She knows better than to distract people doing things that take focus. So... what is she doing? Well, she is sitting on the floor in the pack.. a small pouch in her hand. Her focus is on the pouch and... Grim can sense the mystical energy slowly building. This was during the first part of the flight. Before reaching Latveria. She wouldn't perform magic there... lest Domm sense it. But she was simply performing a bit of Seidr to try to determine anything she could do on this mission to improve the odds of success. Now however, that ritual is complete and she sits quietly. Angelica sits like a lovely little wallflower. Of course it's a trap. She got that on the front page of Dr Banner's notes. That was literally the title of the book. Dr Doom's cliffnotes: of course it's a trap. She kind of shrugs and wonders if she can get ice cream here. It seems like a nice country, really. Once you look past the robots and stuff. Very sweet hillsides. A fjord or two maybe. Red Robin lifts a hand in a quiet staying gesture at the worried talk of the others. "Standard practice. You're supposed to announce who you are when entering air space... We're unidentified until we identify ourselves." Which was typical but usually with way less guns. Usually. Her hand falls back down to the comm casually, waiting for a response... and hoping it's a good one. "One moment." Silence. While the team waits, a massive Doombot de-cloaks along the side of the Quinjet. And the jet sensors never even registered it. The female voice says, "Avengers Quinjet, you are cleared to land on strip 1A. Bot #7352 will escourt you in. Welcome to Latveria." The communication is immediately cut after that. They are led over the Latverian countryside. There are children out laughing and playing. The citizens are going about their daily lives in good spirits. They're all healthy and seem to be well-adjusted. Eventually they are led to a old style castle. There is an airstrip that leads into the courtyard and it is lined with those larger bots like their escourt. Once they land, the bots stand at attention and don't move. There is a dark haired woman, wearing a green gown with a pad in her arms. She has a pleasant smile on her face as she waits for the envoy to move to her location. "Welcome delegates. Welcome to Castle Doom. The Lord is expecting you. Please, follow me." Zatanna takes a breath and glances over, "All right folks, let's do this." She goes to twist her fingers around and goes to put her top hat on, and moves to flank Serqet and takes a position behind her. She keeps a smile on her face then and goes to twist her wand over to slide it up her arm as she taps her chin thoughtfully. Long distance to Freya: Angelica Jones assumed the scenerunner would do it, but clearly that was not the case. Donning her mask, more for appearances than because she thinks it'll fool Dr Doom (though it might for his people), Angelica becomes Firestar. Then she comes out of the quinjet, rather like a person coming out of a jet. Eventually, if she can figure out how to get off a five point crash harness. Darn thing, probably locked until the pilot tells it to let go. She fumbles with it for a good minute in quiet stubborn refusal to give up and names it her arch-nemesis twice before the clasps release. THEN she's ready to come out and meet her adoring public. Bruce Banner pages: How the diplomacy goes ;) "This isn't typical," Adelah didn't believe it. She could understand protocols, but this is far from the norm. She looks outside to observe the Doombot flying along with them. "Hmph." It felt good to finally disembark from their flight, especially with all that weaponry ready to shoot them down. Now to carry out the mission. She follows their guide up to Castle Doom, taking in all the sights of this place. She holds a great amount of skepticism, despite the pleasant imagery of this place. "It would appear security for the public is of utmost importance. Admirable," she complimented. "Great measures have been taken to ensure safety here." You paged Bruce Banner with 'No problem. so far, Doom has deigned to allow us to land and I've lost a fight with a five point crash harness designed by Hades himself.' Glamor or no glamor? Hrmm... Freya opts for a more subtle show of force. She knows Doom will sense the glamor itself, but will he be able to pierce it? That is a good question. So Freya comes out of the Quinjet with what looks like a fairly standard jumpsuit on. A black haired beauty in a frumpy jumpsuit. She doesn't speak up. But merely lets her eyes flit about as she absorbs tactical details.... The attempts at being light hearted and jovial, jesting, or just silly are dropped entirely now that they were here. Red Robin's expression has gone to a perfect pokerface--blank, and not giving away any sign of her thoughts. The jet is lead along, landed, and she puts the jet into standby mode. It took too long to warm up on takeoff. The chair swivels around and she unbuckles her belts rising to her feet with her hand sweeping back to fluff out her cape. "It's standard for a military nation," she responds to Adelah simply. "I'll take up the rear. The rest of you go first." A gloved hand lifts to gesture at the doors out waiting for them to go. It would be easier for her to guard from the rear and help clear a path back to the jet if needed this way. She doesn't bother to disarm herself of any of her gear, either. There no was no pretending with her right now. Down the ramp she goes moving with a quick step that sends her black and yellow cape fluttering behind her in a way that would make Batman proud, even if it were broad day light. There's no glancing around from her as if she were some tourist; she strides purposefully behind the contingent well aware of her surroundings as they pass. There are times that Grim hated that his avengers suit had a mask, it made eating difficult and drinking, but this was one of the times where it was a blessing. The look of dread and defeat on his face were not visible, and the robotic voice that hides his real voice contains no emotion as to not reveal his state. "Please let us exhibit a level of professionalism" he was in the process of saying as he was watching angelica fight with her restraint "Firestar, When we return, please see me." he says before "Activate Security Protocol, Prepare Emergency Plan Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot I'm out of here, confirm." before walking out of the quinjet with his hands at his side. "Please Tell our Host, that he honors us with the opportunity he provides, his hospitality is unparalled and gracious" he might have done this before. The woman offers the group a genuine smile. "I am Selene. Lord Doom's personal assistant. And you are.." She points to each of them in turn. "Red Robin, Firestar, Serqet, Grimiore, Zatanna, and the Asgardian Freya. Please, this way." As old school as the castle looks on the outside, on the inside the tech is cleverly hidden while still giving the illusion that they are in an old castle. Selene comments to Adelah. "Oh yes, Serqet. Lord Doom sees to our every need and want. He is the most benevolent leader we've ever had. I sincerely don't know what we'd do without him." The group is led into a dining hall, there is along table, set with food and drink. The setting is elegant and at the head of the room is a throne that looks like it's made out of a mundane dull material. After the group enters, there is a flash of green light and Doom is sitting on the throne. He gives off the air of a powerful king with his high tech armor, green hooded cloak and the way he casually drums his fingers on the arm of his throne. "Doom acknowledges you, Grimiore. You stated words pleases Doom as you realize that you now stand before the god of this land." He pauses. "Sit and refresh yourselves and tell Doom why you have come before him this day." Zatanna falls in step over behind Serqet, and goes to wait for her to speak then. Zatanna herself does not move to sit unless the rest of the party does, but she does have her top hat vanish as she glances about the room. Opulent, excessively so.. She doesn't like this setup one bit. And she recognizes the end of the long hallway and the chair rising above everything else as a way to intimidate. She keeps her tone firm, and doesn't speak and her expression neutral. The Homo Magi goes to keep her hands relaxed, even as she looks everywhere out of the corner of her eyes. Well, so much for the idea of the glamor. Freya shrugs her shoulders and maintains it. If anyone asks, she's going to explain that she did not wish to overshadow anyone with her full regal outfit. Yeah. That's the ticket. Either way, she just follows in silence. She would be happy to step forward and speak to this regal king but... she thinks that the Avengers would like to -ally- with him, not go to war in the next twelve seconds. So she wisely keeps her mouth shut. The rather quiet Firestar, who is not in any way inwardly ready to pee herself, walks in a pale imitation of Red Robin. Who is very cool right now by the way, and she's fairly certain is actually breakinga few rules on how girls are allowed to be. It's kind of invigorating to watch, but there's also so many things to look at and this place seems quite nice, if she's honest. Also Grim apparently wants to see her later, so she's got that going for her. :) He must think she's doing well. Mind you she hasn't actually done anything yet. Except the little argument with the...oh. Um, okay. Well, that's a thing that happened. So Firestar is here, and let's just move on then. "You know of us," Serqet noted, continuing to walk along with Selene. She had to take Grim's words to heart. He seemed to know about this sort of thing, being from this area. "It is different being recognized as opposed to needing introduction. I am appreciative of the effort placed forth." Once in the dining hall, she stands and looks around, her focus immediately drawn to Doom as he arrives in the room. At his request, she takes a seat. Grim is mostly keeping his head forward, his eyes not straying by the opulent scenery. "Thanks to you, Our Almighty Host, we shall do so." he looks to the others his mask looking at the table ~hint hint~ "The Diplomats Serqet And Zatanna Wish an Audience if their words are worthy to fall upon you." he says with a bow his head and his arm across his chest, his fist over his heart. Zatanna goes to take the cue from Adelah, and takes a seat over from her. She's resisting the urge to try and scry or put up defensive spells, remembering the briefing given. Her expression is neutral, but she does give a glance to Serqet to see how she should play this. Red Robin stands last in the hall behind the others listening to the formalities, and the level of pomp in Grim's words. The urge to speak up to cut through the red tape is so very much there... but she had already been given her role: Backup. Eyes shifting toward Grim she gives just a hint of a 'no' shake of her head. Instead of sitting, her arms sweep behind her to clasp loosely in an at-ease posture. It was her turn now to tip her head up toward the throne that Doom was on. "Thank you for your hospitality, it's quite gracious. While I mean no disrespect, I would much prefer to stand as I've been sitting for hours already. It will also make your scans easier given my equipment." Doom extends his hand and a wine glass floats over to him. Those in the room that can tell such things, recongize it as indeed magic. "Doom is still waiting for all of you to accept his hospitality." The lower part of the armor on his face retracts as he takes a sip from his glass. The scars on his chin and around his mouth are seen briefly before the helm lowers again. He regards Carrie with a look. After a moment, he states. "Doom is feeling benevolent, so the Wakandan and the Magi may speak. Make haste. Doom's time is precious." Firestar isn't doing anything. With her being about as easy to read as a pamphlet on easy pamphlet-making, she doesn't try and make herself useful. More importantly, she's basically looking at Dr Doom with a smile. He seems nice. Then, with Doom making his opinion known, she blurts out, "I don't know how to accept hospitality properly," then blinks at her own words, and drops her eyes a bit. "I mean...I'm sorry." At least she's honest. It's her first diplomatic mission; if that's the worst she does you're all lucky. Lucky I tell you! She's cocky, so Freya who has been silent thus far... lets her glamor fade away. Sure, Doom is being showy. He likes showing off. She simply strides forward and sits down elegantly, reaching to take a glass of local vintage. "Thank you for your generosity. You take your host duties seriously, I can see this." That said, she merely leans back and takes a sip of the wine. Whether or not she likes it, she is a -good- actress, so it appears as if it was not quite the best she's ever had, but on the list of top ten. Angelica Jones sits down. Someone seems to have cued her that she's supposed to be dining. Apparently someone, with a bit more subtlety, is on the case. Wonder who that might be. Grim turns and a whoosh of steam escapes from the vents on his mask before he almost sits down at the table. He caught the shake of the head from carrie, at least she spoke her intentions and they were at least on the surface honest. Then he raises his stance as he walks over to the other female members who have not sat and holds out their chair for them, it seemed like a gallant and gentleman thing to do.. but it was an ultimatum in disguise. Finally he reaches back to his chair, the bottom part of his mask slides back revealing his mouth and he sips from the cup gracious, asks for two more refills, drinks those and then exhales.. They were never going to let him lead a mission again.. wait that might be a good thing. Red Robin doesn't flinch under that look... But it does seem she relents, just a little bit, by stepping toward the table. Reaching out with a gloved hand she takes up one of the cups not yet claimed to take a sip of whatever beverage resided within. The talking, it would seem, is something she's leaving to the diplomats. "Then we will not waste your time, Lord Doom," Adelah began. "We are here to discuss the Sinestro Corps, to place it simply." She lifted up a glass, part of her mask falling away to allow for drinking. Despite her position, even being in this man's presence was different than typical diplomatic engagements. You don't tend to speak with the actual leader in those circumstances. "In particular, there may be need of assistance..." Zatanna is not touching anything. Not the wine, not the food. She's just observing lightly. "Yes, they are a threat to this planet, and if they come here it would lead to a great many people being hurt. Possibly your country members among them. We would seek what allies we can to help ensure that we can safeguard the entire planet from harm from an external threat." Victor turns towards Freya. "Doom is always serious, Asgardian." He doesn't seem at all surprised when Freya drops her glamour. Perhaps he knew of it. It's hard to tell with his mask on and not being able to see any facial expressions. However, when Serqet speaks, his gaze stays on her, maybe he's focusing on her and Zatanna. "Doom is aware of the Sinestro Corp, and he is unconcerned. Latveria will be safe from this invasion." No matter what is said next, Victor's attention is drawn to Grim. He is literally staring at him. The lenses of his helm flare up briefly. "Doom is unconcerned with the affairs of lands he does not rule. The Eldritch Mage and his family knows this well, does he not?" Firestar sighs. Not loud, not hard. But she just has to. "I don't believe you," she says to Doom. For all that she's a quiet one, she also stands out whenshe has to. And she has to, right now. "Not that you're lying, but I don't believe that you don't care. A king isn't just a word, it's a belief. That everyone is worth protecting, and even the ones that don't believe yet, someday they will. You're better than that, and I don't beleive it even if you say so." Angelica Jones will go hang herself later, but for now...well, her mouth is already open, so yeah. Enjoying the meal because.. it really is enjoyable, Freya merely observes and listens. She has a thought churning in the back of her mind. It's not a -good- idea. In fact she is aware that it is a terrible idea. But she has it there ready just in case.i Either way, she smiles as she sees and hears Angelica. But doesn't say another word for now. Red Robin uses the distraction of Firestar talking to lower her cup slightly. Her thumb runs over the edge where her lips had touched wiping off any traces of DNA she may have left behind. The fact that the goblet wasn't lacking any actual volume of it's contents was, as of yet, hard to notice since she'd only pretended to sip once or twice. Still she was 'partaking' in the bounty at least on the surface. Skimming her glance over toward the others she watches quietly. So far... Firestar's approach may work. It was innocent, and honest, and somewhat endearing. Perhaps it would work. If not she would knwo yet more about the 'king'. Adelah set her sights on Firestar and then back to Doom. She might be inclined to agree with her, but in this instance, those were some dangerous waters. "There is no question of Latveria's abilities to defend itself. What my partner says here is true for the rest of the world. Your assistance would do more than simply benefit us, but contribute greatly towards your coutry and what it can provide for others. I have seen the citizenry here, they are happy, satisfied, well taken care of, something that other countries do not have the benefit of saying or performing in such a way. I imagine it will draw eyes, ears and hearts towards your cause." She eyes Grim carefully as she says these things, attempting to piece together Doom's words for herself. Something didn't seem right here. If he could head-desk like in the meeting he would, but he promised the asgardian and another that he would not repeat that unprofessional behavior, so he slinks into his chair, his cup in his hand being swirled on its base on the table idly as Grim's emotionless mask looks between the members of his team as they do exactly what they do, which is not something you can fault a person for.. He raises his finger to the ceiling spinning his finger in a circle signaling to wrap it up, we're leaving. He stands up pushing in his chair all very respectfully. Zatanna is on edge as well. This isn't normal. And then she just narrows her eyes lightly and goes to speak up. "You seem to have guaranteed that the people of Latveria iwll be safe through all of this no matter what happens to the rest of the world, if I get what you are saying." She's got, to quote, what is a bad feeling about this.. Victor turns to look at Firestar. "Doom agrees with your assessment. Which is why everyone who are his subjects will be protected." He slowly spreads his hands. "Doom is not concerned with those who are so short sighted to not accept him and his supreme intellgence as their Lord. Therefore those who place themselves under Dooms protection will be saved. Those who do not will likely taste oblivion. Is that answer more to your liking, Mutant?" Doom leans back on his throne and steeples his fingers under his chin as he looks at Adelah. From the way he cants his head slightly, it almost seems as if he is considering her request. "Wakandan and Magi. Your words are heard by Doom. And he is moved by the level of your sincerity. He would be willing to consider your request, but requires a boon in return." His helm swirls until he is looking at Grim once again. "Doom requires that the Edritch Mage remains in Latveria as his personal guest." Angelica Jones would like to respond to what Doom says to her, but he clearly isn't looking for a response. Not from her, anyway. He moved on after speaking to her, so she assumes she's being dismissed. And sighs, slightly let down. She still thinks better of Doom than that, for all his words. Maybe she'll come talk to him later when there's time. But for now, that's clearly Grim's sign for a bathroom break, and she's good with that decision. A goblet is set back on the table with a clunk though no liquid sloshes out. It goes down like a gavel, really. A judge pounding down the hammer to call a final decision. "I was wondering when you'd get to the point. For someone so busy, you certainly like your pomp and circumstance." Red Robin turns her head back toward Doom, apparently ignoring the others as she fixes him with a steely gaze. "You want your wayward sheep back. It must look bad, having a defector out there working for those so often against you. A bad mark against you." "I'll give you one last chance to prove you're not just a sociopath and narcisist. If you know anything about Sinestro, and you DO, then you know their powers are based on fear. If they win over the rest of the world, if they wipe it out, they'll look for the next nearest source of fuel... And whatever deal you have with them will be pointless." "So, we're asking... I'm asking... Please. Help us. In a noble way that the world will respect you for, for once." "I do not believe it within our arrangement to grant you this boon," Adelah stated. She observed Grim closely, then Doom. "Though we have been honored by your hosting of us here, the extent of which we can make this arrangement is beyond our capacity," she explained to him. She gritted her teeth behind her helmet, listening to all the words that were flying around and her frustration was mounting. This was not the time nor place for that sort of thing. She and Zatanna were here to do the speaking and yet, she sees every angle she could work fading out one by one. Zatanna glances to Doom, and moves to stand up, "While we can appreciate your hospitality, we are not going to leave our friend. In the coming times we will need his aid to help protect the world. And while we can appreciate your need to ruminate on it, you have said you will consider it, not grant it or refuse us. All we have in that case is our friend being a hostage and unavilable to help." "No.." He turns to the members of his team, he takes the mask off holding it in his hand. He turns around stepping forward. "I will accept, if it so please you my lord, that you show them the magnamy of your ultimate intelligence and power. If you provide the ungrateful peasants of the nations of this hemisphere, your beneficence of your power. I will submit myself to you on bended knees." His mask appears in the hand of adelah, as the mage slowly bows to his knees. "I, Janus Capreanu, Son Of Romania, Blood of the earth beneath your feet, submit myself in exchange for the protection of the ungrateful, The Americans have their own defense's which can serve them, they pail in comparison to yours." he says looking over his shoulder, and perhaps his words on the jet were prophetic, 'If I must I will stay behind to ensure you escape.' before he bows his head in silence. Zatanna glances to Grim, "No you are not. Our host would be a dreadful one and highly rude if in turn he did not permit guests that had behaved appropriately here that in turn left under diplomatic protocols upon denial or prompted consideration of thier request. In turn it would reflect awfully upon his hspitality and his word given we have come here under parley and not violated it. You are *coming* with us out of here, Grimoire. There is no justifiable reason for you to remain here, for the point of diplomacy or for consideration of our offer. We do not let our own be hostages." "Red Robin, Doom will overlook your youthful exhuberance and ignorance this day. The Eldritch Mage has made his decision, and Doom will honor it. The Mage is a citizen of Latveria, not the United States, and Doom is honorbound to treat him with the respect of his homeland." He stands up from his throne and floats over to land next to Grim. "Doom hereby proclaims that Latveria will protect this hemisphere of the planet from the Sinestro invasion. By doing so, the world will come to know the benevolence and infinite wisdom that is Doom." He lays his hand on Grim's shoulder. "Doom gives you his word that the Eldritch Mage will be returned to you in two days time from this moment. So says Lord Doom, ruler of Latveria." He then flicks his wrist, the doors to the hall open and several human sized Doombots walk into the room. "Doom grants you safe passage back to your vehicle. Know that you have the support of Latveria." Having bided her time, waiting to see how things were going to turn out. It's almost as if she knew that this moment was approaching. As Doom began speaking.. she rose to her feet, all delicacy and grace. As the doors are flung open, she is already moving towards Grim. "Even Doom would not wish to seperate Mistress and Apprentice. Such a relationship is older than Latveria itself." She inclines her head, "I have begun teaching the young Latverian Mage Asgardian magic, and I would hate for his -lessons- to be interrupted by this. Might I have Doom's permission to remain at the side of my apprentice that I may continue my lessons?" She smiles winningly and adds, "And in two days time, we will both return to the York that is New." Adelah wanted to be upset. She flew all the way here, placed herself in her natural position only not to accomplish her goal. She can't say her pride wasn't affected by what took place, but it appears something more has come out of it than what she could accomplish. She had to bite back unseemly words and simply accept Grim's wishes and his mask as well. She may not have negotiating power on that level, but she can't argue with the bid that was placed here. "We will leave him here and that is the final word on this matter. We have engaged in our duty, it is time for us to depart while we still have the opportunity," she explained to the group. "We will return once the two days have passed. Let us not make light of the boon we have also been granted in return." No. Not this again. Red Robin twitches, not at Doom's response to her words, but at Grim's. For a moment her eyes shut recalling... A place beyond this place. Old instincts kick in even as her mind is lost in the past. A single, firm nod is given as she turns away, cape snapping behind her from the sudden crisp movement. "We're done here, then," she agrees. Grim made his decision. Trust him. He'd already made his intentions known on the jet though at the time she hadn't understood what he meant. Now she knew. Another hero giving himself up for the greater good. Just like before. At least he wouldn't be alone with Freya's intervention. "The quinjet leaves in three minutes. Be there or walk." With that she strides out through the doors not looking back. Zatanna doens't really consider it a *boon*, she considers it something their host is doing to showcase his power and a show of intimidation. But, she's reasonably sure the rest are aware of this as well, and in turn they'll deal with the situation as it comes. Zatanna's hand flickers, and in turn she goes to apparate her top hat back over to her arm to hold it underneath as they head back towards the Quinjet. "We'll speak when we get there and are out of his territory." Angelica thinks a moment. It's never simple; Doom does care about the world, but needed a diplomatic reason to lend his help, and yes, given the reams and reams of warnings in Dr Banner's notes, she's quite sure that he has some ulterior motive for wanting to put his doombots into our territories but he's not a bad guy. He just needed to be shown proper respect, in order to make it happen. Probably had this all planned before they even arrived. She shrugs, not entirely sure, but happy that Grim's going to be treated well. Freya will see to that, even if there's more to this than even the Asgardian is aware. And a little sad that she didn't get to use the Latverian facilities. They're probably wierd, like, they have mirrors or three seashells instead of paper. So she says nothing, letting the adults talk, and warms up Doom's coffee for him. No reason, just a thing. Time to go. But she gives Freya and Grim a reassuring smile. They're not alone. Then gets urged toward the jet by Red Robin, and scoots obediently. Angelica Jones fried all of his scanners in my last pose. Just noting. Grim speaks "May I Address them, Lord?" given the permission, he stands up moving first to adelah "Thank you for understanding the diplomatic situation. Please return this to Tony it will explain the situation." he says pointing at this mask, before he moves to angelica before she left "Firestar; Please make sure to buckle your belt properly. Left in the Left , Right in the Right. Our debriefing is delayed but still on." He just gives the red bird a salute before moving to zatanna "Please Accept My choice. It is the best option." finally he moves to freya "Mistress, It would not be appropriate to abuse our hosts hospitality. Your offer is touching, and I am afraid our lessons will have to wait. Please join the others, without you they try something unwise. As my Mistress, I ask that you honor my request, and keep my teammates to honor it as well." before he pats on her shoulder with a serious look that hopefully she can read as hint. "Thank you Lord" he says with a bow of his head. Doom is silent as people protest. He expected this and then he nods to Grim when he asks for permission to address them. After the Mage has said his peace, he steps forwards. "Doom does not give his word lightly. But he swears that the Eldritch Mage will come to no harm as long as he is within Doom's domain. The Mage has accepted Doom's hospitality for the time previously specified. Doom also reminds you that you are in Latveria, where Doom's word is law. He has granted you safe passage out of his domain. Go, before Doom alters the terms of the deal. I have spoken." Adelah looked back at those who departed, having come to terms with the decision, but there were still those that remained that made her concerned. It was assuaged to some degree as Grim was allowed permission to address them and speak personally to her. She looked over the mask as it was explained to her. "You have my word. I will return it to him." She stayed around momentarily to ensure that the team would leave here and head back to the jet. Once everyone was cleared, she made herself the last one to enter the jet and claim her seat. Angelica Jones successfully buckles up before they land. It's a close one, though. Zatanna enters to the jet, and goes to take a seat then. Her lips are going to remain sealed until they're out of Latverian airspace and she's had the chance to do scrying to make sure that the Quinjet is secure as they go to sit in it and launch out. Okay. This makes Freya's eyes widen. She inclines her head and studies Grim for a long heartbeat. She in turn places a hand upon his own shoulder. "Know that regardless of how this all resolves... when your day comes, I promise that should you desire it, you will spend eternity at Folksvang. Where heroes reside after death." That is very soft, an attempt to pass along only to Grim. So it is spoken to Grim and Doom due to his ridiculous sensors and such. "Should you need my aid, call upon me, and Doom will learn that I am above national boundaries. Countries mean very little to me. Midgard is Midgard." That said, she turns and saunters away. Without a look back. Red Robin has already strapped in, waiting. She's counting down in her mind. Focused. Even if she might be the bad guy for pressing their quick exit... Once all are in, she sets the coordinates and takes off. "Fucker. Fucker fucking fuck."